Cosmic Cruiser, the Outrageous 34 ft Van With Murals That Defies Logic

The Cosmic Cruiser is a 34-foot-long (10.3 meters) van that’s painted with murals, and it’s been around for decades. You could say it’s world-famous: the van has been at shows all over the world, reaping awards wherever it went. It is the creation of artist and automotive fabricator Ivan Benic from Canada, who is as famous as his van.

Both are older now and perhaps somewhat out of shape, compared to their younger years, but they remain fascinating. It’s about time we got to meet them, too.

The Cruiser started in 1974 as an idea: Ivan decided he wanted to build the wildest and most visually-striking van in the world. It would take him three full years and a lot of money to get the Cosmic Cruiser to its final, current form, but he remembers every detail and every step of the process. You can tell this is a work of love.

Available at the bottom of the page are two videos, two interviews with Ivan. One focuses more on the unique aesthetics of the van, with the airbrushed murals and Ivan’s reputation, while the other has Ivan walk around the Cruiser and explaining how every part was made.

The Cruiser is an 8-wheel 10,400 pound (4,717 kg), incredibly long and colorful van that seems to defy logic. At first sight, you feel like you should hate it, but the more you look at it, the more you appreciate the kind of work that went into it. It started out as a Chevy van, which Ivan cut in half to add length. He then replaced the roof with another one, from a 1969 Vista Cruiser – and this was the first of a very long string of modifications.

Most parts on the Cruiser are custom, but Ivan notes that the part under the front is all stock. He did have to learn a lot of stuff about building cars when he added two axles in the front, but he casually shrugs it off by saying “there’s nothing you can’t do” if you’re willing to learn from others. Talk about your daily motivational post: this is it.

The nose stands out and it’s what Ivan wanted. He deliberately set out to build something that had never been done before, and he takes pride in doing the nose in one night.

“My bodywork, it’s all handmade and the only thing that is on the outside that is still original are the door handles,” he adds with a crooked, toothless smile.

Standing tall at 6 feet (1.8 meters), the Cruiser has 400 hp under the hood. Ivan says that, once you get it up to speed, fuel economy “isn’t that bad.” He swears that, even after all these years, the van lives up to its name: it cruises down the highway and handles very swiftly in the city, as well. It is the ideal ride and not just because he built it himself (though it probably weighs heavy in the balance).

The exterior is entirely done by hand by Ivan, who says he wanted to create his own style. There are murals with bikini-ed women and race cars, a waterfall and cosmic imagery. Inside, there’s a generous couch, a bed with skylight, and enough space to hold a family-sized gathering.

In March this year, Ivan had plans to bring his restored Cruiser to the Ottawa Gatineau International Auto Show, in what would have been the Cruiser’s big comeback into the spotlight, after some years off to the sides. Sadly, organizers canceled the event due to the international health crisis. So here’s to hoping Ivan and the Cruiser will be there the next year.

As for whether there are any chances of seeing the Cruiser in another pair of hands, Ivan has made up his mind: it won’t happen, he won’t be selling it until he’s “ready to go and park [himself] on a beach with a pina colada.”